Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #93040 in Books
• Published on: 1999-10-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 500 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
The Booker Prize-winning Schindler's List (on which Steven Spielberg based his Oscar-winning film) demonstrated that Thomas Keneally could make history as compelling as any novel. The Great Shame, expands upon the achievement of his earlier fiction; because this is more than just the story of the Keneally family tree, transported from Ireland to Australia in the 19th century. It is the story of how Irish men and women came to be dispersed all over the world, and what they made of their lives in their new homes. It is the epic history of a whole people.

The Great Shame is, superbly, rivetingly, hypnotically readable; partly because Keneally orchestrates his many narrative strands so expertly and touches his story with many moments of beautiful writing, but also because it is all, even at its most extraordinary, completely true. The result is astonishingly vivid. What The Great Shame is most reminiscent of is a classic 19th-century novel; a Dickens, or a George Eliot. We follow Keneally's characters with the same involvement through their successes and their trials, until the very last sentence in the book when, like a master from the classic age of the novel, Keneally pays tribute to "the piquant blood and potent ghosts of the characters to whom we now bid goodbye". --Adam Roberts

Synopsis
A new non-fiction book recounting the 19th century history of Ireland. The book traces the three causes of the halving of the Irish population in that century: the famine, the Irish emigrations to American and Canada, and the transportation of political activitists to Australia. It is a quest for the author's Irish ancestors.

Customer Reviews

Interesting, but very detailed and long
I did not finish this book, but not because it was in any way bad. It is a very detailed account of 19th century Irish history. I was anticipating it containing rather more detail about the potato famine and rather less detail about Irish settlers in the new world and convicts transported to Australia - this is not a criticism, but just not quite what I was after reading, having been prompted to read it after finishing Edward Rutherfurd's Ireland: Awakening.

I may well return to this some day.

Rewardingly detailed but quite a slog
I chose this book based on the notes on the back cover. The notes imply that the book tells the history by following the story of Hugh Larkin, transported to Australia, and his family left behind in Ireland. Wanting to know more about Irish and Australian history, especially around the time of famine and transportation I thought this would be an interesting way to read about it. However, the Larkin family history takes up, I would estimate, less than 1% of this book. The book fails to give an interesting history of Ireland and Australia through the 19th century, using the Larkin family as a vehicle, so the book did not meet my expectations and did not suit me.

However, if you are looking for a book that will give you a detailed insight into the key political agitators for home rule and land reform in 19th century Ireland, then this is the book for you. Told with lots of interesting personal asides that make the key people feel real, and help you to understand their motivations, two main generations of activists are followed as they are transported to Australia. In time, some return to Ireland, some remain in Australia and many make their way to America. More American history is covered in this book than Australian and if you want a detailed account of the role of the Irish in the civil war and the formation of America then this book will give you insight into some of the key players.

The Great Shame has reinforced my understanding of the motivations for home rule and the struggle to break away from British rule. Additionally it has provided me with some background on ex Irish and American motivations for funding the Irish struggle. The Chicago Triangle and Invincibles are given various mentions in their role as groups responsible for dynamitings, and the general Fenian desire to distance themselves from the actions of these groups. However, the emergence from the IRB of the IRA is mentioned on only a couple of pages.

In conclusion, I've tried to be fair to this book, as it was the cover notes that set up my expectations of the contents, which were not fulfilled. Despite this, I still found the book hard going and was glad to finish it.

a fascinating book
This book not only outlines many of the great hardships faced by irish people in the 19th century but also tells how these brave people strove to defy the shackles placed on them by their British rulers. I am an avid reader of books on history in general and an Irish republican but I must admit I was largely unaware of the exploits of people like Thomas Francis Meagher however having read this book I find the men who took part in the failed rebellion led truly fascinating lives. People like Meagher, and O'Brien were pioneers of democracy on three continents. On a human level I find most 'British' people know very little about polititcs in Ireland and maybe if they read books like this and realised just what their great empire did to Ireland they might have a little more understanding.